Pretend Reality
by iMickyChan
Summary: Pretend to love me for a day." Stopped in his tracks for the second time that morning, the jounin just about choked on his own saliva. KakaSaku. Cute little oneshot with enough angst and fluff to make the world go round.


Wheeeeee. My very first fic on this site! I know I'm not the best of writers but I do love writing anyway. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Comments are love and constructive criticism is double love. Have fun!

* * *

If someone had asked Haruno Sakura when it was exactly that she fell in love with Hatake Kakashi, she would not have been able to come up with a suitable answer.

Maybe it was when she realized that his hair couldn't be described in simple colors such as gray and white, but rather as a blend of something more, to the point that it just couldn't be classified under any spectrum or shade. And with the sunlight glaring down at what others would deem unruly bed-hair, to her the strands almost seemed to glow a luminescent silver.

Maybe it was when she realized that even if half of his face was constantly covered with a mask that became as much a part of him as his skin and with a headband obscuring another part of his already mysterious features, she could still tell what facial expressions he was making. Kakashi's eyes would crinkle in the most particular of ways when he smiled, and Sakura decided that one eye was all she needed to see to know what he was feeling.

And maybe it was when those infuriating excuses of his about getting lost on the road of life, or even the more ludicrous one of saving cats from predatory trees became an endearing quality to her instead of a daily annoyance.

Sakura did not know when it happened, but it did. Little by little, her former sensei had managed to evade the obstacles she had set around her heart, and before she knew it, he had built himself a permanent residence there.

With these overwhelming feelings revealing themselves to her day by day, all she could do was play the blame game and point fingers at Naruto and Sasuke. If Naruto hadn't left on his year long trips to train with Jiraiya, and if Sasuke never left to a pedophilic snake which induced the year long house arrest upon his sudden return, she would never have been placed in the situation of having to spend this much time with Kakashi.

"Damn them to hell," she muttered.

Even with her bitterness she was glad because during that year, she had felt loved, as if she was something that was worth the attention. Even though he was no longer her sensei and now that she was Tsunade's apprentice, it seemed he still made her a priority although Sakura knew he most likely had his own matters to deal with.

When she would feel lonely, he had the uncanny habit of appearing on her doorstep inviting himself in to her apartment for dinner. When she felt like crying, Kakashi always offered that shoulder to cry on, even if she looked like a mess afterwards, he never minded. He was just there when she needed him to be, and she for once despite not knowing his feelings towards her, felt as if she was _special_.

But reality was harsh, after that long year which seemed to drag on for forever, that year that made her acknowledge just how much she had fallen, the boys returned. It was almost as if Kakashi had spoiled her rotten during the time they spent together to the point where Sakura felt disgusted with herself when she realized just how upset she was at losing her place as the center of his attention.

The truth was cruel. She wasn't special to him, she was _never_ special. Sakura didn't have to be born a girl, because to Kakashi she was just another one of his past students, he treated her no differently than he treated Naruto or Sasuke. They were his old team; she might has well have been one of the boys and with that thought she cried herself to sleep.

"_His kind gestures were all just part of my overactive imagination…"_

A sharp knock on her door jolted her from her self-pitying reverie.

"Sakura?" someone called out to her, and though the voice was muffled it could only have belonged to one person.

Her eyes grew wide, "Kakashi…"

She hurriedly ran her fingers through her hair to make it look relatively presentable but failed miserably, and as she stared at her reflection in her mirror Sakura noted in dismay that no amount of makeup could cover up the fact that she had been crying.

Not letting that fact stop her from answering the door, she threw on an oversized t-shirt and tied her hair into a messy ponytail before managing to cry out, "I'll be right there!"

A few yelps and uncomely stumbles later, she found herself staring at him as he stood on her doorstep as if nothing was wrong with the world.

"Yo," the tell-tale signs of crinkles under his eyes suggested he was smiling, but if that were true his smile dropped just as suddenly as he took in her haggard appearance.

"You've been crying," he stated.

She thought there was just a bit of sadness and worry intermixed with the undertone of just those few words but she would not allow herself to think he cared, never again would she make that mistake.

"Umm, yeah," a mumble incoherently bubbled up from her throat, her mind racing for an excuse, "My cat died."

Sakura's ability to read his facial expressions kicked in again as she noticed that surely under that mass of hair his eyebrows had just furrowed.

"Sakura, you don't have a cat."

She mentally kicked herself, "Sorry..uh..I meant my neighbor's cat, umm yeah. I've grown very fond of it and it passed away last night…"

There was a quiet pause, as she knew that Kakashi didn't buy any of it.

"Right well, Naruto and Sasuke were just worried about you and they wanted me to come by to check if you were sick or something. You haven't left your apartment in three days, but I guess I'll leave you to your crying….over your neighbor's cat."

Sakura laughed morbidly to herself as her eyes grew bitter and jaded.

"Of course, _they're_ worried about me, huh?" she whispered gently.

If it wasn't for Kakashi's keen sense of hearing he would never have caught it, and as he turned around ready to leave he replied turning his head over his shoulder, "_I_ was worried too."

Her heart jumped a bit inside, followed by a sharp twinge from the mental awareness that he was merely worried as a friend. But right now Sakura didn't need any more friends, and even though she knew that Kakashi was simply leaving after having done what he came to do it seemed as if with his back turned to her, that he was leaving forever.

Suddenly she felt cold despite the obvious humidity in the atmosphere. Without realizing what she had done until she felt fabric between her fingers, Sakura had grabbed onto his sleeve and gave a light tug asking for him to stay. Kakashi gave her a questioning glance.

"Kakashi," the query was uttered while she stared at the floor, not daring to look at his face, "do you believe that people will ever find their happily ever afters?"

Though the question seemed to him completely random and out of the ordinary, he decided to play along at the sight of his obviously distressed ex-pupil.

"It depends," his answer was short and curt.

Her grip loosened on his sleeve and her hands fell slack against her waist.

"Because," she breathed, "I don't think that happiness is something that's meant for me."

Kakashi scratched his hair trying to think of a response to something so melancholic. The more sensible side of him felt like telling her that fairytales didn't exist, but that was no way to cheer the poor girl up. Thinking on his feet he just decided to say the next thing that came to mind.

"Maybe you're meant to be someone else's happily ever after?"

The man was shocked at himself for being able to say something as thoughtful as the blurb that just left his lips. It seemed that only around Sakura did unusual things happen and the painstaking lengths he would go to in order to make her happy surprised him as well.

She cocked her head to the side at the startling comeback, and it took quite a bit of effort on his part to not blurt out how adorable he thought she looked at that moment.

"Whose?" she asked.

His eyes softened, understanding that he had come to terms with these certain…_feelings_ that he possessed. Struggling with inner turmoil and conflict, his eyes flashed from a stormy grey to a tranquil black.

His heart said, _"Mine."_ But his mouth aware of his insecurities gave another reply, "I don't know."

Sensing that Kakashi was about to leave again now that the questioning was over the currently fragile pinkette gathered up all her courage and cried out to him in a jumbled sentence, "Kakashi I have a favor to ask of you!"

Confusion flitted across his features. "What is it?"

Sakura clenched her fingers together, her knuckles turning white.

"Pretend to love me for a day."

Stopped in his tracks for the second time that morning, the jounin just about choked on his own saliva.

"What?"

"Please," she murmured in desperation, "just for one day."

And that was when something clicked in his head. The puffy eyes, the unprompted questioning, the sudden need for affection, all of this had to be because of some guy. Kakashi felt betrayed, his steely gaze shining with animosity at the man he thought held her heart; the man that had made her such a wreck.

"_It was always the Uchiha…"_

"No," he retorted, suppressed anger lacing his voice and tone.

"_I will not be some man's substitute."_

"If that's all, I'll be leaving now." He walked away at a brisk pace, her premonition that he was leaving her for good held an even truer ring to it now.

Sakura said nothing. As Kakashi's heart had hardened at the induction he had reached, hers was beginning to shatter and break. She mindlessly closed the door after him like a zombie and simply fell to the floor as if her muscles could no longer bear to support her. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

"I knew it," she sobbed, "my happily ever after will never come true."

She knew what had to be done now.

* * *

"Sakura is what!?"

Tsunade crossed her arms and huffed at the overly loud and hyperactive ninja in front of her.

"For the third time Naruto, she's transferring to Suna for a year."

"B-but, but….she can't!" the boy stammered.

Underneath the annoyance she was feeling at the stubborn boy, Tsunade could not help but feel worried for her student's wellbeing herself. Sakura had arrived in her office utterly broken, demanding for a transfer to the medical facilities in Suna under the obviously false pretense she gave about "furthering her medical knowledge."

She knew that there was nothing in the Sand village that could possibly teach Sakura what she did not already know, but upon being begged to not interrogate her any further and to just let her go, Tsunade could do nothing but agree. What it was that had so tragically snuffed the lights out of her apprentice's normally glittering eyes, she would never know.

During this entire hectic interval Sakura had remained seated in a chair next to Tsunade's desk as Naruto protested wildly. The Uchiha heir seemed unnerved himself; through the years and all that this team had been through Sakura had become one of his closest friends. Last but not least, Tsunade turned her eyes over to Kakashi to gauge his reaction.

The normally composed and passive jounin looked absolutely furious but never spoke a word.

The woman sighed. _"What a mess."_

"Well that's that, so get the hell out of my office now, I need a damn drink."

"Sakura!" Naruto implored one last time.

She did not respond, only turning her head the other way so that pink strands of hair concealed her face. He looked crestfallen.

"Okay then," he whispered, "let's go guys. She doesn't want to talk to us."

Kakashi stuffed his hands into his pockets slinking silently out first with the shuffling footsteps of Naruto and Sasuke following soon after. The door slammed loudly behind them.

Tsunade rubbed her temples feeling an oncoming headache.

"Care to explain now, Sakura?"

Said girl looked at her long-time sensei and smiled sadly.

"No, shishou. There's nothing to explain."

Now it was her turn to leave, walking away with a heavy heart she decided it was time to go home and pack. All the transfer papers had been completed and all was in order for her departure. The sooner she left, the better.

But Sakura hadn't gone far from the Hokage tower before she felt a rough grip on her shoulder as her back forcefully collided with the wall of an abandoned alleyway. Collecting chakra at her fingertips and ready to spring at the sudden attacker, she instead found herself face to face with none other than the man whom she had to resort to such extreme measures to escape.

She stared at him blankly, her body already felt hollow. Refusing to look him in the eyes, she chose to say nothing and stood there quietly.

"So it's Gaara, huh?"

Kakashi's rude accusation shattered the silence.

Now it was her turn to be perplexed, "What?"

"Your sordid little love affair," he sneered, "the guy you were bawling your eyes out over, it's him isn't it? Why else would you need such an unexpected transfer to the sand village?"

His grip tightened on her shoulder, and Sakura developed the daunting feeling of being cornered like prey as his fingers dug into her flesh.

"Kakashi stop, you're hurting me."

He ignored her pleas and continued.

"Well if it isn't the Kazekage, then maybe it's his brother? Or is there some other sand-nin you haven't told us about?"

Her anguish quickly transformed into fury. Who was this man that had replaced her normally laid back former sensei? Using the super-strength that she had undoubtedly inherited from Tsunade she shoved him off.

"Stop it, you're being irrational!" she barked.

His eyes flashed with menace.

"Maybe this is uncommon to you but when people are angry they normally are irrational!" he growled back.

Sakura was stubborn and never one to back down from a fight.

"Oh come off it Kakashi, Naruto and Sasuke had their own little departures, it's about time I left to have mine."

"Sakura," his blood boiled at the nonchalant way in which she addressed her leaving, "this little tirade of yours to chase down some lover boy cannot be compared to Naruto and Sasuke leaving for training! And besid-"

"But you're always comparing me to them anyways right, so what's the point!?" her interjection rang loud and clear.

For the first time since the confrontation Kakashi was silenced.

"What am I to you Kakashi?" she asked bitterly, "I'm just one of your past students, what I do should be of no concern to you. You've found it perfectly fine to treat me like one of the boys all these years, why is today any different?"

Her eyes began to water as pent up frustration was released.

"I'm nothing special to you. And there's no strange lover waiting for me in Suna," her voice which had started out with resentment dwindled down to a miserable whisper, "There was never anyone else, only you; _always _you."

She slid to the floor again; her knees curled up to her chest as she finally let the torrents of tears wash down her face. Her confession left her completely drained and Kakashi was speechless.

"Sakura I-"

He stepped forward to console her which only prompted the crying girl to flatten herself further against the wall in an attempt to get away from him.

"Don't touch me."

"But Sakura you nee-"

Her emerald eyes stared up at him brimming with tears and filled with sorrow, Kakashi's heart felt like it had been given a tight squeeze.

"Please, just…" she reached out to push him away again watching as he staggered back a few steps, "just don't. I want to leave with happy memories, of a time when you cared. I understand when I've been rejected; you made that very clear to me this morning."

"This morning?" he said more to himself than to her.

"If you can't even _pretend_ to love me for just one day, what makes you think you can love me at all for more than that?" she spoke softly, every word mixed with hurt.

Her words pierced right through him, and all he that could register in his mind was that he needed to fix this. Without another word he sat down beside her against the wall, guilt trickling down his spine as he watched her flinch knowing that he was the one causing her such pain. But before she could open her mouth again imploring him to leave her alone, he pulled the trembling girl against his chest and just held her there.

She was shocked to say the least.

"Kakashi?"

"Just shut up and listen to me."

Sakura was taken aback not knowing if she should be irritated at his command or if she should just bolt and run. He didn't give her time to decide.

"I love you."

Her eyes widened, the tears having stopped. Holding her gently and resting his chin on her soft bed of hair, he continued.

"I love it when you smile that radiant smile of yours, I love it when you get angry at me and turn as red as a tomato, I love it when you cook for me even when I arrive uninvited, I love it when you talk, I could listen to you forever, and I suppose I love it when you love _me_."

He smiled as he tilted her chin upwards to face him, the familiar crinkle of his eyes coming back once again.

"And I'll still love you even when you're hundreds of miles away in Suna, though I suppose you no longer have a reason to go there, neh?"

Sakura opened and closed her mouth like a drowning flounder unable to come to terms with what it was exactly that just happened. He couldn't help but chuckle.

Her eyes narrowed. "Don't laugh at me!"

She beat her fists weakly against his chest. Her head was reeling with hundreds of unanswered questions starting from his blatant refusal to even acknowledge her feelings earlier that day. Finally relaxing into Kakashi's embrace she decided to ignore the brewing storm that was sure to cause her pain if she continued to think as hard as she was; but there was no trying to rationalize the inexplicable workings of love. Instead the kunoichi settled for one question for closure on the matter.

"How long have you…..loved me?" she probed, the foreign word rolling off her tongue and making her surprisingly warm and bubbly inside.

Understanding her unspoken need for confirmation he kissed her on the forehead before responding, "Forever."

Her nose scrunched up in distaste.

"Oh god, that makes you a pedophile."

He decided not to counter that but instead to show his disapproval he tickled her until she begged for mercy. Only then did she realize the compromising situation that she was in. Sakura was pulled flush against Kakashi…..and as she noted with embarrassment, sitting in his lap….on the floor…..in an abandoned alleyway.

His eye's glinted mischievously seeming to subconsciously have followed her train of thought.

With an "eep!" he gave her a light peck on the lips, a gentle promise that he would always be with her no matter what. She was his, and he was hers. A misunderstanding had brought them together. From jealousy to anger to tears and then to the cuddling, the two newly acquainted lovers were drowning in the emotions of it all.

This was their happily ever after.

Catching his breath, Kakashi hugged her tenderly one last time before he stood up. Whispering into her ear that he would be right back so he could take her out to dinner, he disappeared in a puff of smoke leaving a blushing Sakura behind to wrap her mind around this interesting new development.

* * *

Tsunade was greeted upon her arrival to her office after a round of sake outside to an absolute mess. It seemed as if a whirlwind had made its way through the room, spreading a blanket of paper all over the floor.

She stormed over to her desk to find that everything was relatively unscathed except for Sakura's transfer sheets to Suna. Stamped on to the sheet about a thousand times was the word 'DENIED' in bright red. Apparently the culprit also knew their way around the Hokage's official stamp set which was, as she noted, ruined for the red ink had been either used up or spilled and the handle of the stamp broken by the sheer pressure that must have been exerted on it to stamp the paper. Whoever it was was in a hurry.

For the first time the furious Hokage noticed a sticky note stuck to her chair. As she read it her eyebrows twitched in obvious anger.

"_I'll clean it up later. –Kakashi."_

Tsunade put two and two together and did not like the logical conclusion.

"That asshole owes me a new stamp set and a really thorough carpet cleaning," she cursed at the sight of the blotches of red splattered everywhere.

A long pause later, she added another thing to the list.

"And a new goddamn apprentice."

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Thanks for reading! Now press the nice pretty comment button? - iMickyChan.


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